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Context No. 2572 of 4322 · Numbers

Context · Reflection

Numbers 2:12-16: in context

12“Those who encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon. The prince of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. 13His division, and those who were counted of them, were fifty-nine thousand three hundred. 14“The tribe of Gad: the prince of the children of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of Reuel. 15His division, and those who were counted of them, were forty-five thousand six hundred fifty. 16“All who were counted of the camp of Reuben were one hundred fifty-one thousand four hundred fifty, according to their armies. They shall set out second.

The ordering of Israel's camp continues, tribe by tribe. Simeon and Gad take their assigned places beside Reuben, each with its leader and its number counted, and together they form the camp on the south side. And the instruction ends with their place in the march: they shall set out second, after the camp of Judah, in their appointed order.

A small phrase carries a large lesson: they shall set out second. Every tribe had its assigned spot and its assigned turn, and not everyone could be first. The camp moved in order because each division accepted its place in the line, second or third or last, rather than jostling to lead. There is a quiet discipline in knowing your place and taking your turn without resentment. Much of our restlessness comes from wanting to be first, to go ahead of others, to be the lead camp. God's arrangement gave each tribe a real and honored place, and asked them to keep it, even when that place was second.

Do I accept the place and the turn God has assigned me, even when it is second or last, or do I chafe at not being first in line?

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